TERI Enviro Club: Teacher's Corner

Simple ways to protect mother Earth
Do you know that 85% of the energy we utilize is derived from fossil fuels? Fossil fuels are non-renewable energy sources such as coal and petroleum. With the present rate and trend of energy utilization, the world depends on the availability of fossil fuels. As a result, fossil fuels are depleting at a fast rate. In fact it would take millions of years to bring back the fossil fuels that we have used in just a few thousand years. That’s where renewable energy comes in as a promise. Renewable energy is any natural source that can regenerate itself through natural mechanisms over a short period. Renewable energy comes form sources such as the sun, wind, running water, etc. In the present scenario, renewable energy sources are superb alternatives because they are inexhaustible. Another benefit of using renewable energy is that they are pollution free. Their major drawbacks are limited energy production as well as cost.

Solar energy can also be used directly to provide heat. Drying clothes in sunlight is a common practice. Solar energy is successfully used to provide electricity in buildings. Water energy (hydropower) is another common source. The energy of high speed winds can be harnessed using wind mills.

In the present day context of power crises and environmental degradation, we need to conserve our resources. There is a lot that we can do at our end. Even small individual efforts can save our depleting resources to a large extent. Let’s see how we can save our resources:

always keep a check on the taps and pipes for any leakage - save water because its precious;
reuse the water from kitchens and bathrooms in washing floors etc.;
water the plants during morning or evening hours to avoid water loss due to evaporation;
turn off lights, ACs and fans when not in use;
save fuel by avoiding unnecessary journeys; car pooling is a good option! Prefer walking: its the best option for small distances;
take advantage of the sun; always dry the clothes in the sunlight whenever possible;
recycle used bottles, cans, plastics, etc.;
reuse your grocery bags;
grow different types of plants in the garden;
use compost made from kitchen waste in the garden and flower pots;
reuse paper;
do not waste food and water for there are people some where in the world who are dying of hunger.

Wg. Cdr. I. Babbar

A. Rainwater harvesting: The rainwater that falls on the roof taps is harvested for ground water recharge using appropriate techniques. A huge underground tank has been constructed to collect the rainwater.

B. To stop runoff, a large number of plants and grass land have bene grown leaving only a bare minimum area under concrete flooring as required.

C. Push type taps have been installed to prevent leakage. All around services of plumbers are made available to attend any plumbing work.